From January to June 2016, Israeli authorities demolished 168 dwellings in Palestinian communities in the West Bank, leaving 740 people, including 384 minors, homeless, a report by B’Tselem found out.

According to B’Tselem’s figures, this six-month period alone saw more demolitions than any individual year over the past decade (with the exception of 2013, when occupation authorities demolished 175 homes).

The policy adopted by the Israeli occupation authorities (IOA) vis-à-vis these communities keeps civilians from maintaining any semblance of a normal routine, imposes a life of constant uncertainty on locals, and constitutes harassment per se, the report read.

Even those individuals whose homes were not demolished live with the constant fear that their homes might soon be demolished and that they will be forced to leave the area they call home, the organization added.

This government policy, systematically implemented for years, constitutes the forcible transfer of Palestinians who are a protected population in an occupied territory, and as such breaches the international humanitarian law.

Home demolition plays a key role in Israeli policy implemented in the occupied West Bank.

According to the same source, demolitions are carried out only in what has been designated as Area C, which comprises about 60 percent of the occupied West Bank, and which Israel views as primarily meant to serve its own needs, and in East Occupied Jerusalem.

Accordingly, Israel acts to establish facts on the ground so as to create a reality that would be difficult to change. The state takes action to displace and expel Palestinians citing flimsy legal pretexts.

For example, one reason given for home demolition is “illegal construction” – an untenable argument given the absence of any real possibility for Palestinians to build legally.

The separation of Area C from the remainder of West Bank land helps Israel shirk its obligations to the entire Palestinian population of the occupied West Bank.

Israel instead lays the responsibility at the door of the Palestinian Authority that was supposedly given certain powers in Areas A and B. Yet this division is entirely artificial. It does not reflect a geographic reality or Palestinian life as a whole.

The policy Israel implements in Area C impacts all West Bank residents as their future depends exclusively on Israel. The majority of the West Bank’s land reserves and natural resources lie in Area C so that making use of them – for expanding Palestinian communities or building factories, for agriculture, for laying water pipes or paving roads – is subject to Israeli approval, and such authorization is rarely granted.

Israel also retains exclusive control of the movement of people and goods in the West Bank as well as of the border crossings with Israel and Jordan. It also carries on arresting and trying thousands of Palestinians a year in its military courts, the majority of whom do not live in Area C.

Carrying out demolitions and devastating communities do not constitute implementation of “the rule of law”. Rather, these actions are a longstanding, systematic dispossession to which all Israeli authorities are party, B’Tselem report further read.

Dozens of Israeli soldiers invaded, on Wednesday at dawn, the town of Surif, northwest of the southern West Bank city of Hebron, and fired missiles into a home, before bulldozing it, leading to the death of one Palestinian, who was barricaded in the property for more than six hours, and exchanged fire with the army.

The head of Surif Local Council Mohammad Lafi said the soldiers located the remains of the slain Palestinian, who was later identified as Mohammad al-Faqeeh, 29, and took placed his body in one of their vehicles before driving away.

He added that at least seven Palestinians were injured in clashes that took place between the invading soldiers and local youths, who hurled stones and empty bottles at the army, while the soldiers fired live rounds, rubber-coated steel bullets and gas bombs.

The soldiers are now completely surrounding Surif, after they declared it a closed military zone, preventing the Palestinians from entering or leaving it.

Dozens of Israeli soldiers invaded, on Tuesday at dawn, Surif town, northwest of the southern West Bank city of Hebron, and fired missiles into a home, before bulldozing and demolishing it.

Eyewitnesses said the soldiers surrounded the property, and used loud speakers demanding a Palestinian to surrender.

An exchange of fire took place between the soldiers, and a person who was barricaded in the home, before the army fired at least two missiles into it.

The property in question is a three-story building in Wad Jaddour area, in Surif, and is owned by a Palestinian identified as Mohammad al-Heeh.

The army placed Surif under complete siege, declared it a closed military zone, and said the Palestinian is wanted for the military and security services.

The head of Surif Local Council, Mohammad Lafi Eghneimat, said that the soldiers also cut electricity supplies to Surif and al-Jab’a nearby village, before pushing many armored vehicles into them.

The invasion also led to clashes between the soldiers and many local youths, who hurled stones and empty bottles on the military vehicles, while the army fired live rounds, rubber-coated steel bullets and gas bombs.

Medical sources in Surif said seven Palestinians were shot with rubber-coated steel bullets and live rounds; three of them were moved to a hospital, while many others suffered the effects of tear gas inhalation.

On Tuesday, Israeli soldiers driving Caterpillar D9 armored bulldozers and other armored vehicles entered the town of Qalandia and began demolishing Palestinian homes.

A group of townspeople quickly organized a blockade, surrounding the homes with their bodies, but they were violently assaulted by the Israeli soldiers.

Local sources report that when the Israeli troops rolled into town, blockades were formed almost immediately in front of the targeted homes. Israeli troops then attacked the Palestinian residents with tear gas, rubber-coated steel bullets, sponge bullets and concussion grenades. Seven local residents were injured as a result.

According to the Wafa News agency, among those assaulted was the head of the Qalandia village council, Youssef Awadallah, who was taken to a hospital for treatment.

According to the most recent United Nations OCHA report on home demolitions by Israeli forces, “There was a sharp increase in Palestinian-owned structures destroyed, dismantled or confiscated by the Israeli authorities in the West Bank during the first two months of 2016: At least 320 structures, including 88 homes, were destroyed. February 2016 stands out as having the highest number of structures demolished in a single month since OCHA began the documentation of demolitions systematically in 2009.”

In a recent report on counterpunch.org, journalist Richard Hardigan reported, “OCHA reports that during the years 2012-2015, an average of 50 homes were demolished in the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem every month. So far this year, the army has destroyed 539 structures, a rate that is more than three times higher. In all of 2015, 453 buildings were demolished, so the sharp surge in this kind of activity is an extremely recent phenomenon. The reasons for this sudden increase are unclear…One thing that is clear is that the Israelis are getting impatient.

“There are currently 11,000 buildings in Area C that have been slated for demolition but as of now are still standing. Recently Major-General Yoav Mordechai, the coordinator of the government’s activities in the West Bank, appeared before a subcommittee in the Israeli parliament to answer questions about the slow pace of demolitions, and he claimed that he was doing all he could. Some right-wing members of the government had accused him of unfairly singling out structures in the illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank, but he quickly dispelled this notion.”

Hardigan quoted the Israeli Major-General of assuring the parliamentary audience, “I want to state unequivocally that enforcement is more severe towards the Palestinians”.

The Israeli occupation army demolished 11 Palestinian homes overnight in Qalandiya town, north of Occupied Jerusalem, at the pretext of their location near the segregation wall.

The demolitions started last night and continued until dawn Tuesday, amid violent clashes in Qalandiya and Abu Dis towns. According to Qalandiya media center, six bulldozers escorted by a large number of Israeli troops stormed 11 homes at least in Qalandiya and forced their residents out before embarking on knocking them down.

Consequently, violent clashes broke out with the occupation troops, leading to the injury of several young protesters from the town. Medical sources said that three young men suffered bullet injuries and at least four others suffocated by tear gas during the events.

Journalist Mahmoud Awadallah and chief of the town Yousef Awadallah also suffered injuries when Israeli soldiers physically assaulted them during the events.

The Israeli army justified the demolition of the houses by claiming they were built illegally near the wall without construction permits, according to one of the owners.

Owners of the demolished houses had received last Sunday notices giving them 72 hours to evacuate their homes before razing them.

In a related incident, 30 Palestinian young men suffered bullet and tear gas injuries during confrontations with the occupation troops in Abu Dis town, east of Jerusalem, according to the Red Crescent.

Social media platforms that neglect to remove incitement will be fined $78,000 per post. If it emerges that the site was aware of the post, for example, if it was quoted in major news outlets, but still did not remove it, the fine will be increased.

The legislation classifies terror-inciting posts as those that call to or encourage anti-occupation activism and attacks. The bill enjoys widespread support in the current Knesset, with 21 MKs signed as sponsors from a broad cross-section of extremist parties. It sailed through its preliminary vote by 50 to 4, with one abstention.

But, Arab MK Abdul Hakim Hajj Yahya of the Joint (Arab) List objected to the bill, saying it was intended to target Arab social media users. “All of these laws are only implemented against the Arabs,” he said. “Why doesn’t this law have a section about calls to racism, why only terror? This law is another racist law and another law that continues to express the discrimination [against Arabs].”

In March of 2016, Facebook figures said some 296,000 posts and 136,000 photos are published on the network each minute from its estimated 1.09 billion active daily users.

UNRWA is deeply concerned about the humanitarian impact of the closure applied by the Israeli authorities in the Hebron district, affecting in particular Fawwar refugee camp.

The closure was implemented following a series of violent incidents that took place before the end of Ramadan in which two Israelis were killed: a stabbing attack in Kiryat Arba settlement on the outskirts of Hebron killing a 13-year old Israeli girl in her home (30 June), a drive-by shooting attack on Road 60, south of Hebron (1 July), and two separate stabbing attacks in Hebron (30 June and 1 July).

The United Nations, including the UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-Moon, has repeatedly condemned in the strongest terms, all such attacks. The UN condemns all violence impacting Israeli and Palestinian civilians.

Since the beginning of the closure, the main entrance of Fawwar camp has been closed for 25 consecutive days affecting approximately 9,500 refugees in Fawwar camp. These closures create serious challenges for UNRWA’s humanitarian access, including the delivery of medical supplies, the removal of refuse from the camps, and the daily movement of Agency staff working inside the camp.

The closure has impacted the population both socially, economically, and places an increased health risk for camp residents. The main entrance is closed to vehicles, which has impacted camp residents’ ability to report to their work outside the camp. The entrance can still be used by pedestrians, yet the extra distance that many have to travel due to avoid closures incurs additional expenses impacting their already bleak financial situation. UNRWA is also concerned about the disruption to the supply chain increasing the costs of basic commodities inside the camp.

UNRWA West Bank Field Director, Scott Anderson, visited the area on 19 July and was granted exceptional access through Fawwar main entrance only after coordination with the Israeli authorities. Following his visit, he stated “I condemn the closure as it collectively punishes the Fawwar camp residents.

This is all the more disturbing when Fawwar camp residents – a refugee couple – were the first to respond to the Israeli family following the drive-by shooting incident, providing them with first aid before the arrival of the ambulances. While echoing the UN’s repeated statements condemning violence against civilians, I call upon the Israeli authorities to refrain from collectively punishing innocent people for the acts of others.” UNRWA will continue to liaise with the Israeli authorities to request passage of medical supplies in the camp in order to ensure the continuous supply of medicines and vaccinations for its health clinic.

International law prohibits the imposition of collective punishment in occupied territories. Art. 33(1) of the 1949 Fourth Geneva Convention to which Israel is a party and which applies to occupied territories, provides that “no person may be punished for an offence he or she has not personally committed.” This prohibition is considered absolute without any reservation regarding military necessity. Accordingly, UNRWA calls upon the Israeli authorities to put an end to the closures in the West Bank and to ensure unimpeded access for UNRWA staff and humanitarian assistance across the West Bank, thereby also safeguarding UNRWA’s humanitarian space.

A number of settlers who have stormed the compound tried to perform Talmudic rituals during their tours in total provocation to Palestinian worshipers who started chanting “Allah the Greatest” in protest against the settlers’ desecration of the Islamic holy place.

On the other hand, Israeli police continued to prevent a number of Jerusalemite women from having access to al-Aqsa for allegedly being involved in protests against settlers’ presence in the holy shrine.

Tension remained high in and around al-Aqsa Mosque since early October 2015 after Israeli police repeatedly stormed the site and restricted Palestinians’ access into it, while allowing large numbers of settlers to access the holy site under tight protection.

For Muslims, al-Aqsa represents the world's third holiest site. Jews, for their part, refer to the area as the "Temple Mount," claiming it was the site of two Jewish temples in ancient times.

Israel occupied the city of Jerusalem during the 1967 war. It later annexed the city in 1980, claiming it as the capital of the “Jewish state” in a move never recognized by the international community.

The Israeli High Court ruled for the misappropriation of 100 dunums of Palestinian lands in al-Khalil’s southern town of Yatta, in the southern occupied West Bank.

Coordinator for the local anti-settlement committee, Rateb al-Jabour, said the Israeli Supreme Court turned down an appeal filed by the Palestinian citizen Hussein al-Hamamdeh to cancel the confiscation order.

The Israeli court claimed the targeted lands are abandoned tracts and that the occupation authorities have the right to seize them in favor of Israeli settlers.

Land expert Abdul Hadi Hantash said the Israeli occupation authorities have held sway over one million and 300,000 dunums of Palestinian lands in the occupied West Bank and registered them as “state property” under the pretext that they are abandoned.

Meanwhile, the mayor of Yatta and a human rights group have petitioned the High Court of Justice in order to have the army lift the blockade imposed on the West Bank town of Yatta.

The closure was imposed on June 9 after it was found that the perpetrators of the anti-occupation attack on the Sarona Market in Tel Aviv had come from Yatta.

A court rule is expected to be issued Wednesday over the appeal. The army initially completely blocked off all 12 entrances and exits from the town before they opened them a few days later.

On July 2 and following an anti-occupation shooting attack near Road 60, the army reimposed a cordon on the area and blockaded Palestinians’ movement in and out.

A home to 70,000 Palestinians, Yatta has been subjected to a tough blockade. Civilians could not reach hospitals while others failed to get to their workplaces as a result of the closure.